This month carries the dual, contradictory and complementary themes of great concentration of energies and of equally great expressive abandonment, making for a terrific dance of opposites. This is reflected in the Sun/Moon and the Venus/Mars relationships and beyond, and are both necessary to reach towards the great karmic event of Pluto and Ceres on the North Node of the Moon.

Firstly, it's Scorpio's month predominantly and the sign has always been known as a great concentrator of sexual, psychological and spiritual power, a more human personification of the potency of the lower chakras and our deepest emotional resources. The Sun begins the month in the middle of a multiple conjunction with Venus and Lilith on one side and the Vesta asteroid on the other, while trining and sextiling the Nodes along with their fellow travellers.

The Sun conjunct Venus puts love, creativity and sexuality at the very centre of proceedings, mostly for the good, and with the classically Scorpionic intensity and passion for merging. This is juicy enough for the average human, but with Lilith in the mix, who is exactly conjunct Venus, we are taken into a whole other realm of depth, opportunity and challenge. This warrior of the sacred feminine, who some believe inaccurately to be anti relationship, will enhance our relating if the energies are right, bringing the serpent power into play joyfully and ecstatically through our hearts and our bodies. If the energies are not right, if disrespect, inequality or power imbalance colours a connection, then there will be trouble. Lilith is as lethal as Kali, as demanding of the absolute truth of things as Pluto and she will not be quiet!

On the other side of the Sun is Vesta, goddess of the hearth and sacred flame, of containment, commitment and dedicated focus. She is the Priestess archetype and is a part of self that knows how to concentrate energies and direct them. As one of the so-called virginal goddesses, her role is to protect the sacred flame of our individual essence, to create greater psychic autonomy and in the psychosexual waters of Scorpio, to concentrate and direct its awesome emotional intensity with purposeful intent on any level, worldly or spiritual.

Against this backdrop of intensification, we have the expressive qualities of the Moon in Leo at the start of the month and Mars, Eros and Pallas Athena all conjunct in Sagittarius, to be joined by Mercury from the 9th. While the Scorpionic processes rein in energy, fire seeks to express it. This sets up some significant tension, while demanding that we honour both, concentrate our energies while giving our fire appropriate outlets. Eros, Mars and Pallas in Sag represents some absolutely brilliant energy, combining male and female warriors with great creativity and passion for action - good for inspirational projects and causes. On a physical level alone, this is not energy you should sit on, as it will set up some intense restlessness, irritability and bitchiness if you're not allowing its fire out.

In Leo, the Moon is at its feisty, expressive heights - big energy, big emotions, and big dramatic outbursts, a big-hearted energy with much dynamism and generosity of spirit. It is, however, part of a grand cross with the Neptune/Chiron conjunction opposite, while squaring an opposition of Shiva and Medusa. The former is like wading through psychic quicksand and the latter like getting in the middle of Kali and Shiva having a domestic, neither of which is pleasant and far from the clear atmosphere that Leo likes to play in.

Nevertheless, it is an opportunity to heal and flush issues and patterns that have inhibited our emotional freedom and particularly the freedom to express what we feel, whatever its quality. Also fire energy has a tendency to override the more vulnerable and sensitive parts of ourselves, preferring the more dynamic ends of our emotional range. The opposition from Chiron and Neptune presents us with the consequences of the denial of our softer range and gives us an opportunity to work at creating a better unity between our fire and our sensitivity. The Medusa/Shiva logjam simultaneously creates a pressure cooker to get in touch with and clear out some deep levels of frustration, if not overt rage. Either way, the combination sets the stage for some deep healing and cathartic releases, especially if you can find the right places to release safely.

Finally, Pluto is exactly conjunct the North Node of the Moon, along with Ceres. This Node gives us a preview of the future that is inherent in the energies and processes at the moment. This combination points to a pivotal point in our collective evolution, with both warnings and possibilities. Pluto rules the process of death, rebirth and transformation, while Ceres is a form of the Great Mother. Both are connected to the earth, its bounty, its power and as the Mother. It's saying that either we continue as if nothing is going on and get more floods, earthquakes, famines, more collective trauma, or we move with the transformative energies of our time and get a chance at a massive rebirth. As I write this, there's news that Australian leaders are preparing to bite the bullet to heal the Murray/Darling. We need more of this realism and political courage. Better birth pains than dying gasps.

Daniel Sowelu (BSc Dip Ed) is a therapeutic astrologer, primal therapist and groupleader in his 27th year of private practice. www.sacredlawfirm.com.au